Moccasin blank



Dec. 3, 1946. B. F. LEE 2, 5

MOCCASIN BLANK original Filed Feb. 22, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 1120.3, 1946. 3 B. F. LEE 2,4 2 05 MOCCASYIN BLANK Original Filed Feb. 22, 1944 2 Sheets$he et 2 Patented Dec. 3, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT TF I CIE 'MOCGASIN BLANK Bernard .F. Lee, Iramingham, 'Mass., :assignor "to Jacob fSandler, Brookline,

Original application February 1 9.44,

No.152? ;406. Divided and :this application ruary 7.,.1'9.45.,-Serial No. 57635.56

disadvantage in respect to manufacturing cost and production rate, principally because of the skill and time required in fitting together and stitching the contiguous edges of the upper and the plug. It has been the practice to trim the marginal 'edge of the forepart after the lasting operation and under these circumstances the-opera'tormust're'move .a variable amount of waste in order to fit the previously located plug. This step .has required extreme accuracy as well as skill and judgment acquired only by long practice.

.I have discovered a novel shoemaking process by'which I am able entirely to eliminate this slow and troublesome operation and accordingly "to speedup the production of moccasin type shoes and obviate, or at least substantially reduce, the necessity of skill and experience in carrying out the process. For example, I am able to eliminate fitting and trimming the upper on the ".last and to substitute stitching in a straight needle machine on fiat blanks for the more complicated stitching operations heretofore considered necessaryin manufacturing this type 01 shoe.

To this end the process of my invention is characterized Tbyproviding aflat composite blank including a sole-shaped area, a marginal forepart, and .side portions, all shaped to constitute in the finished shoe the sole and upper complete except :for the plug. The composite blank is trimmed .in flat condition to present a beveled edge about its marginal .forepart, and the "plug is similarly trimmed and beveled to exact and final size :so that the edges of the upper and plug may be -brought together and stitched without any fitting operation whatever upon the last. Preferably .and as herein shown, I perforate the beveled edges of the upper and plug in registering relation and thus positively insure the exact and accurate registration of the parts of the shoe which is so important in manufacturing high grade shoes. The novel composite blank above described constitutes an important feature of my invention.

The completed moccasin type shoe comprises a single integral piece of leather including in its 2 3 area the sole oi the shoe and the entire upper except the plug. Preferablyandas'herein this blank maybe closed at the back seam and then .a sole is superposed upon the sole-shaped area oi-the blank and attached thereto, an op.- eration which may -be conveniently carried out with the assistance of a straight needle machine. The plug is then tacked to the last and the composite upper properly assembled .so "that the theyeled edges of the two blanks .are Tbroug'htltogether without fitting throughout the tor-apart of the shoe.

These and other features and characteristics of the invention will -be best understood and appreciated from the iollowing description'o'f :apreterred embodiment of theshoe selected tor purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings which illustrate also the process of my invention.

In thedrawings:

Fig. l is a ,plan view of the composite .blank, showing its forepart margin partially trimmed;

Fig. 2 is asimilar view of the ,plug blank; I

Fig. 3 is a plan view from beneath-of the-composite blankassembled witha sole;

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing the plug and composite blank assembled 01'1'9. last; and

Fig. "5 is a "view in perspective of thepa-rtia'lly completed'shoeonthe last.

The first step of my novel process consists providing a composite blank of the enem'l'char- 'acter illustrated in Fig. 1. This anaysbeeiiected by die-mg the blank from-askin crapper leather using a die equipped with marking devices and perforating punches, or the blank may be 'pro- :duced by the usual methods of hand :cutting and marking. The blank comprises an interior soleshaped area II! which is (defined in "the blank by lines or creases. The blank merges outwardly from this area into two similar side portions .12 which are shaped to constitute in the shoe the counter portion :and quarters. The blank also merges into :a marginali forepart area which is in eilect a segment shapediba nd and is formed with a small wast-e strip M.- l'-h'is is re moved by 'sk'ivlng the edge "of the flatblankso as form a beveled edge l5. A small se'ctoi Hi is cut out from the shank of the sole-shapedarea. The edges of this are subsequently stitched together and thus the shank portion of the blank is narrowed. A series of stitch perforations; I1 is also formed along the beveled edge of the forepart marginal portion I3. All of the operations of preparing the composite blank are carried out 3 while the blank is in fiat condition, thus facilitating speedy and accurate results.

The plug blank 20 is prepared in the same manner, as by dieing it from the same or a similar skin of upper leather, trimming the waste strip 21 from its marginv and producing a curvedbeveled edge 2?" thereon. --Stitch perforations 23 .are formed along this beveled margin with a spacing corresponding to those of the marginal forepart f the composite blank.

The rear end of the composite blank is now closed by a back seam and provided with a stay strip l8 in the usual manner. Eyelets 19 may then be inserted along the outer edges of the counter portions of the blank. Then, as suggested in Figa 4 same size, whereas by processes formerly employed the edge of the forepart is pulled up to a height varying in accordance with every slight difference in the leather being handled.

I have found in practice that the measurement from the tip of the sole-shaped. area III to the edge l5 of the forepart margin is constant for all sizes of the same run, that is to say, for sizes from 2 to 11. This is true also of the measurement from the corner of the blutcher ear, comprising a part of the side portions, to the nearest point in the outline of the sole-shaped area i0.

Another characteristic feature of the composite 3, a stiff sole blank 25 is superposed upon the soleshaped area of the composite blank and attached thereto in any desired manner as, for example,

besecured temporarily by tacks to the forepart of alast of suitable size, care being taken that the plug lies straight upon the last and that its beveled edge 22 is accurately located thereon.

' The composite blank is now assembled upon the plug-carrying last, the back seam being carefully located, and the marginal forepart l3 being drawn upwardly, shaped to the forepart of the last 30 and secured temporarily in position by tacks as suggested in Fig. 4. In that figure a tack is shown as being placed'in the forward corner of each counter portion of the shoe and at one point'near the toe thereof, but these tacks may be located at any convenient place and inserted or removed as the stitching operation progresses.

The shoe is completed by bringing together the beveled edge l5 of the marginal forepart of the upper and the beveled edge 22 of the plug and stitching these edges together, preferably using the perforations I! in the forepart and the perforations 23 in the plug. As suggested in Fig, 5, the stitching operation may be carried out by hand using two needles and so producing an exceptionally strong double thread stitch showing distinct impressions in the material of the upper and so impartingan extremely attractive finish to the shoe.

' It will be understood that the composite blank "shown in Fig. 1 is laid out upon the basis of a series of carefully determined and related measurements thatpermit the assembling of the upblank is that the spacing from the stitching perforation may be maintained uniform in all sizes of shoes, a single perforation being added in increasing from one size to the next. The composite blank permits a convenient amount of leeway in the length of the sole 25 with which it is combined. The sole is locatedupon theblank With its tip edge coinciding with the tip line of the sole-shaped area lfland with any excess length projecting rearwardly beyond the end of the sole-shaped area indicated in Fig. 1. While in the finished shoe I prefer to have the relation shown in Fig. 3', any excessive length in the sole is distributed merely as heel seat extension. The sole blank 25 is positioned and preferably cemented in the desired location and then permanently stitched in place, If stiffening is desired for the counter pocket, this may be provided before the last is inserted.

The present application is a division of my co-'- pending application, now U. S. Patent No. 2,381,356, dated August 7, 1945, in which I have claimed the shoemaking process herein disclosed.

Having thus disclosed my invention and described in detail an'illustrative method of putting it into practice, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A composite blank for use in the manufacture of moccasin type shoes, comprising a soleshaped area having a contiguous segmental forepart marginal portion with a beveled edge, an outsole secured to said sole-shaped area, the blank containing aline of pre-forme-d uniformly spaced stitch perforations located in a line corresponding to the contour of the beveled edge and adjacent thereto, and side portions which merge intothe sole-shaped area and constitute the quarter and counter portions of the finished shoe.

2. A set of blanks for use in the manufacture of moccasin type shoes, comprising a first blank having a sole-shaped area. of upper leather and a stiff sole united to the upper leather in said area, the upper leather portion of said first blank extending outwardly beyond said sole-shaped area in a contiguous segmental forepart margin having a p rforated beveled edge, and quarter por tions which extend rearwardly beyond the heel end of said sole-shaped area, and a second blank shaped as a forepart plug and having a beveled edge provided with perforations arranged to register with the perforations in the first. blank when both blanks have been assembled on a last.

BERNARD F. LEE. 

